Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as "rock and roll" in the United States in the early 1950s, and developed into a range of different styles in the 1960s and later, particularly in the United Kingdom and in the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, a style which drew heavily on the genres of blues, rhythm and blues, and from country music. Rock music also drew strongly on a number of other genres such as electric blues and folk, and incorporated influences from jazz, classical and other musical styles. Musically, rock has centered on the electric guitar, usually as part of a rock group with electric bass, drums, and one or more singers. Typically, rock is song-based music usually with a 4/4 time signature using a verse–chorus form, but the genre has become extremely diverse. Like pop music, lyrics often stress romantic love but also address a wide variety of other themes that are frequently social or political.

Underoath is an American rock band from Tampa, Florida. Founded by Dallas Taylor and Luke Morton on November 30, 1997, in Ocala, Florida; subsequently its additional members were from Tampa.

Ø (Disambiguation) is the seventh studio album by American metalcore band Underoath. Released on November 9, 2010, through Tooth & Nail Records, the album was the band's only without founding member Aaron Gillespie, and is the first and only record by the band with Daniel Davison, formerly of Norma Jean. It was also their final album before a two-year breakup from 2013 to 2015. They would not release another studio album until 2018's Erase Me. Ø (Disambiguation) was met with acclaim and was recorded at Glow in the Dark Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, the same studio where the band's previous album, Lost in the Sound of Separation was recorded.

Contents

Background

Upon announcing the album, the band updated their Spotify biography to read: "The band who once openly—and without apology—professed their faith-based worldview onstage nightly, have since moved beyond the realm of seemingly impenetrable polemics. At various junctures, Erase Me illustrates those moments of sanctuary, anxiety, betrayal and conflict that inevitably arise when humanity grapples with belief systems."[11][12]

Spotify is a music and podcast streaming platform developed by Swedish company Spotify AB, headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden and listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Launched on 7 October 2008, it is currently available in 79 countries and regions throughout the world. It provides DRM-protected content from record labels and media companies. Spotify is a freemium service; basic features are free with advertisements or automatic music videos, while additional features, such as improved streaming quality are offered via paid subscriptions.

Drummer Gillespie said of the album, "We've had success and we've come through a lot of waters. There's been 11,000 things we've been through so you would think, almost rhetorically, 'What do you need now?' All of us are finally in that place in our lives where the only thing we care about is inclusion for everybody—for the world. For me, exclusion is the scariest thing in the world. And I think Underoath coming back now with a new record—which none of us thought was possible—we want people to know that this is your music and you can feel however the fuck you want about it. I just want to prove that we are doing everything in the most honest way we ever have. This is the healthiest we've ever been as a group of people, as musicians, and in our worldview."[13]

Critical reception

The album received positive reviews upon release with some publications praising the chemistry between screamer Spencer Chamberlain and singer Aaron Gillespie as well as Christopher Dudley's programming while many fans criticized the band for going in a more rock direction in contrast to their metalcore back catalog.

Spencer Chamberlain is an American musician, best known for being the current lead vocalist for the post-hardcore band Underoath. Before fronting Underoath, Chamberlain was the vocalist for the band This Runs Through in which his brother, Phil Chamberlain, was the drummer. He is currently the vocalist of Sleepwave.

Aaron Roderick Gillespie is an American musician, best known for being the original drummer and clean vocalist for the metalcore band Underoath, and the lead singer and rhythm guitarist for the alternative rock band The Almost. Gillespie also maintains his own solo project, and released his debut full-length album, Anthem Song on March 8, 2011. From 2013 to 2016, he was the touring drummer for Paramore.

Metalcore is a fusion genre combining elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk. The word is a portmanteau of the two genres. Among other styles blending metal and hardcore, such as crust punk and grindcore, metalcore is noted for its use of breakdowns, which are slow, intense passages conducive to moshing. Pioneering metalcore bands—such as Integrity, Earth Crisis, Converge and All Out War all of which had formed by 1991—are described as leaning more toward hardcore, with their style sometimes being called metallic hardcore, whereas later bands—such as Killswitch Engage, All That Remains, Trivium, As I Lay Dying, Bullet for My Valentine, and Parkway Drive—are described as leaning more towards metal. Pantera and Sepultura have been particularly influential to the development of metalcore in the 2000s, which saw many bands in the genre achieve commercial success.

New Noise gave the album a mostly positive review stating "The whole album is a throwback to when albums flowed together purposefully – much like how Define the Great Line embraced the push and pull of inter-album dynamics. Erase Me is a full-album experience that feels like a bridge between Underoath's previous four records and vocalist Spencer Chamberlain's electronic rock project Sleepwave. Christopher Dudley's synth-work and programming, along with pulsing bass-lines from Grant Brandell result in the most industrialized version of the band yet. However, the stars of the show are Chamberlain and drummer Aaron Gillespie, whose kit work is as impressive as ever ('On My Teeth' will make fans smile). Their vocal trade-offs skew fairly heavily toward Chamberlain's dexterous pipes, which makes sense in keeping with the darker sound. It doesn't always work, most notably in sections of 'Rapture' and 'I Give Up' that feel a bit out of sorts"[4]Metal Injection wrote of the album that "'Rapture' might not be an immediate hit with Underoath fans, and there are a couple of other tracks with the same flavor as such, ('Wake Me'), but there are plenty of other tracks to chew on. 'On My Teeth' is a great mix of their hectic side while still being able to bring it down with a clean and melodic chorus. 'Hold Your Breath' will also persuade you to circle a pit as soon as it drops. And at the same time, a song like 'ihateit' has also been stuck in my head for several days now. Again, an album like this could have been released immediately after Ø and it wouldn't have appeared to have been a departure." [18]MetalSucks gave the album 2 out of 5 stars and explained "It's not a boring listen per se, but it's not fresh. A significant portion of the material here feels like something bands like Bring Me the Horizon and Norma Jean beat into the ground circa in the late '00s and early '10s. While I'm sure some fans will be content with that, if you're anything like me you'll find yourself wondering whether or not any of this was worth your time."[19] Sputnik Music gave the album 3 out of 5 further elaborating "Unintentionally or otherwise, Spencer's Music Feeds interview divided the band's creatives into himself and Aaron, the pop songwriters, while Tim and Chris bring the heavy and experimental material. It's probably not that black-and-white in reality, but it's an easy narrative I think many will adopt in Erase Me's wake, looking for ways to shift and pinpoint the blame on why the album is a relative disappointment."[20]

Sleepwave is a rock band based out of St. Petersburg, Florida. It was founded by vocalist Spencer Chamberlain after the dissolution of Underoath. Formed in 2013 around Chamberlain brought in longtime friend Stephen Bowman, and the band signed with Epitaph Records. Shortly after, the duo announced their debut album, Broken Compass. Their song, "Through the Looking Glass", peaked at number 37 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart following its release in July 2014.

Metal Injection is a heavy metal music news website. It was created in the summer of 2003 and launched in January 2004 by co-owners Frank Godla and Robert Pasbani.

MetalSucks is a heavy metal music-themed news website. The site features reviews, interviews, information on latest metal releases and blog-like posts from the writers, most notably Vince Neilstein and Axl Rosenberg.

Charts

Related Research Articles

They're Only Chasing Safety is the fourth album by American post-hardcore band Underoath. The album was released on June 15, 2004, through Solid State Records. Prior to recording, it was ready to be recorded with Underoath founder and frontman Dallas Taylor, but instead was replaced with the band's current lead vocalist Spencer Chamberlain. It is also the first record to feature bassist Grant Brandell, who replaced William Nottke shortly after the release of The Changing of Times, and James Smith, who replaced Octavio Fernandez on rhythm guitar.

The Almost is an American Christian rock band from Clearwater, Florida, best known for being fronted by Underoath drummer and vocalist Aaron Gillespie. Formed in 2005, the band's current lineup consists of Gillespie on vocals, lead guitarist Dusty Redmon, rhythm guitarist Jay Vilardi, bassist Jon Thompson, and drummer Joe Musten. The band has released three albums and two EPs on Tooth & Nail Records, with 2009's Monster Monster peaking at No. 67 on the Billboard 200 and the most recent Fear Inside Our Bones released June 2013.

Define the Great Line is the fifth album by an American rock band from band Underoath. The album was released in the United States on June 20, 2006, along with a limited edition version containing exclusive artwork and DVD. For the recording of this album, Underoath's usual producer, James Paul Wisner, was replaced by Adam Dutkiewicz of Killswitch Engage and Matt Goldman. The album debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 charts selling over 98,000 copies in its first week, and within a week of its release it became the highest charting Christian album on the Billboard 200 since 1997.

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